The Light Within
by ShupoKawaii
Summary: Derby has a nightmare, which leaves him stricken with fear. Now, it's up to Rachel to help shed some light on his darkness. But can she do it?


_AN: Well, I've had this idea for about two weeks now. But I was really uninspired to write it, but I decided to buckle down and just do it, and I did. Anyway, it's only my second Bully story, so don't kill me. And, I asked iEmbarrassDerbyHarrington if I could use Rachel, and she said yes, so I have her permission to use Rachel._

_Disclaimer: I don not own Bully, Rockstar does, and I do not own Rachel, iEmbarrassDerbyHarrington does._

Derby rolled around in his sleep, his eyes shut tight, the sheets sticking to his body with the cold sweat dripping from off him. He mumbled incoherent words, lighting rushing into his window and over his paler than normal face.

"Derby?" Bif asked loudly, knocking on his door. It was Bif's job to make sure Derby was okay before he went to bed.

When he got no answer, Bif nodded, and turned sharply on his heel and headed towards his room.

The rain poured down heavily, pounding against the roof. The lightning flashed again, and then the thunder boomed loudly. Derby's eyes shot open, and his blood curdling scream resounded around the room, making it sound even louder then it actually did.

Rachel ran through the school gate's, the rain jacket pulled tightly down on top of her. Her sneakers pounded through the puddles of rain and mud. She was barely able to grab her rain jacket, and now she was paying for rushing, with her feet soaked to the bone.

She ran up the steps, towards the fountain, then down the steps, then back up some more, and crashed into the door, not able to see it.

"OW!" she screamed out, falling down into a puddle. She rubbed her butt, as the Harrington House door opened, and Gord appeared in the doorway, wearing an Aquaberry robe.

"What are you doing?" he laughed, seeing the hood pushed down, her hair soaked, and the puddle around her.

She narrowed her eyes at him, pushing herself up and through the door. She walked down the hall, before stopping near the fireplace, looking at the group of preps.

Derby was sitting down in a chair near the fireplace, a glass of wine in one hand, the other clutching onto the arm rest so tightly his knuckles were white. She gave him a sympathetic look, before kneeling down beside him, her face towards the fireplace.

"What happened to him?" she asked Bif.

He breathed a couple of times, before answering, "Well...it was raining, you know t-thundering and l-lightning? Well, I went to go check on him, and he never answered me, so I thought he was fast asleep. So I left him alone, and went to my room, and not even a minute later he screamed like someone was raping him," his voice cracked at the end.

Rachel looked back towards Derby, who had his eyes closed and his face turned down, the fire casting a dark shadow, eerily really, over his features.

"Are you okay?" Rachel knew it was a stupid question, but it wasn't often that she saw him this dejected.

Derby looked up at her, his light brown eyes dark now, the fear swirling around in them. Rachel bit her lip, and placed her hand over his. He instantly pulled her hand, so that she was in his lap. He buried his head into the crook of her neck, his arms wound tightly around her. Rachel ran a hand through his hair, the other rubbing his back.

"I've gotta go to bed, there's a math test in the morning, and daddy said I could get a advance in my allowance if I actually passed math on my own," Tad said, turning around and walking up the expensively decorated stairs, "I hope you feel better in the morning."

A couple other preps followed after him, but Gord and Bif stayed behind, on either side of the chair.

"You should get some sleep," Rachel said, looking between Gord and Bif.

Gord stared at Rachel and Derby for a second, before nodding, mumbled a petty good night, then retreated upstairs. Bif just stared at Derby.

Rachel looked down as Derby looked up.

"I don't want to go back to sleep," he whispered, his voice broken, and his eyes making it seem like he was almost getting ready to cry.

"I'm not going to make you," Rachel said quietly, "You really should go to sleep Bif."

"I-I don't wanna leave him again," Bif said, feeling like he failed as Derby's best friend and body guard.

"He'll be fine now. You can go to sleep, it'll be okay."

Bif closed his eyes, before nodding a fraction of an inch, then quickly leaping up the stairs.

Rachel quietly got off of Derby, holding his hands and standing up.

"Do you want to go upstairs?" she asked him quietly.

Derby sucked his breath in, before silently nodding. Rachel gently pulled him up, and Derby instantly wrapped an arm around her. She wrapped one arm around him, and helped walked him up the stairs. She silently opened his door and sat down on his bed, and he fell beside her, keeping his eyes focused on the ground.

"Derby?" she gently asked.

His eyes darted up to her face for a second, then out the window, watching as the rain run down the window. The lightning flashed, and the thunder boomed, causing Derby to flinch and immediately turn his head.

"Do you not like the thunder?" she asked.

He shook his head.

"Why not?"

He looked away, refusing to answer her.

"Why aren't you talking to me?" she asked him.

He breathed in, "When I was little-"

He stopped, his eyes moving up to hers, staring into them. She stared back tentatively, afraid that if she looked away, he wouldn't continue with his story.

He cleared his throat, "When I was little... my dad used to work all the time, and my mother was never around much... I always had a personal nanny that took care of me, and then when she was born, my sister. Everything was okay I guess, but one night...... it stormed really bad. The rain was pounding against the roof, and the lightning was bright and looked close, and the thunder was loud enough to make Monique cry. I was trying to sleep, and I guess I fell asleep, because I woke up screaming and hearing the thunder and seeing the lightning. It was horrible, and when my nanny walked into my room, I only screamed harder, because I wanted my mom, and she wasn't there. I guess that night terror just always stuck with me, and I never really liked the rain much since then."

Rachel grabbed his hand, as the thunder sounded again. Derby made a sound in his throat, closing his eyes tight.

"When Bif called me, he said you said you had a nightmare, what was it about?" she asked.

Derby coughed, a light red hue spreading across his cheeks.

Rachel grinned, elbowing him lightly in the side, "C'mon you can tell me!"

He shook his head, refusing to look at her.

"Derby-doodle!" she giggled, "Tell me!"

His blush glowing brightly now, he glanced sharply at her, "I told you not to call me that."

She leaned over and poked his cheek, "You look like a tomato."

He swatted at her hand.

She grinned, "Now what did you dream about?"

Derby nibbled on his bottom lip, before sighing heavily, "The nightmare I had when I was little, was about my parents, my sister, and my nanny leaving me. The house was normal, but as I ran around the house, screaming for my mom and my dad. I couldn't find them anywhere in the house, or anywhere in the yard. As night came, it became darker, and they never came back, and I was stuck in the house, alone and in the dark, and that was when I woke up."

Rachel nodded, signaling for him to go on.

He hesitated, "This one was basically the same. Except I wasn't young, and I wasn't screaming for my mom, or dad, or Monique, I was screaming for you."

Rachel's heart fluttered, and the world swam for a few seconds. She swallowed for a few seconds, her throat dry, her mouth clammy, and tried to get past the lump in her throat.

"Me?" good enough.

"Yes you. I was screaming your name and I couldn't find you anywhere. It was the same dream, except I felt more confined, more alone, and it scared me..." his voice started cracking, and he stopped.

Rachel reached over and grabbed his hand, rubbing her thumb over his knuckles.

"Promise me something," Derby suddenly started, his voice firm, his eyes their light brown.

"Tell me what it is before I promise."

His eyes searched hers, "Promise me you'll never leave me."

Rachel's eyes widened. Derby stopped breathing, knowing that if she said no, he'd break down, unable to hold everything in. Rachel may have been new here this year, but they instantly clicked. She was quirky, strong, and witty, the girl version of him, except she didn't try to manipulate the people around her, and she didn't put up a cold front.

"I promise."

Derby's breath came out hard, "You promise what?"

Rachel got onto her knees, holding his face with both of her hands, and looking him in the eyes, "I promise you, Derby, that I will never leave you."

Derby blinked, and Rachel would bet her life that tears were starting to appear in his eyes.

"Thank you."

He tackled her into a hug, and she landed on her back with an 'oof'. They laughed, Derby's breath tickling Rachel's neck, sending goosebumps down her spine.

Derby stopped, breathing in her earthy scent, soaking in the warmth her body provided.

"Don't you fall asleep on me Derby," she warned him.

"Hmm."

He got off her, his eyes droopy now, landing back on his pillows.

Rachel smiled, standing up, and helping Derby get under his covers, since he kept missing when he tried to grab the sheets. She tucked in his blanket, before standing over him, stroking his hair lightly. Derby's eyes slowly closed, as the hypnotic rhythm made him sleepy.

"Good night Derby."

"Good night Rachel."

She smiled, before leaning down and placing a small kiss on his fore head. Derby made a contented sound, before quickly falling asleep. Rachel smiled, turning his light off, shutting his door.

Derby slept soundly, the rain more soothing now, the lightning reminding him of the light Rachel held inside, and the thunder reminding him of her laugh.

Rachel walked slowly through the rain, everything about it reminding her of Derby. The cold rain reminded her of the way he acted in school. The lightning reminded her of how he was just as scared, if not more, as everyone else. The thunder reminded her of the power he had, and would use for whatever. She looked up towards the sky, the lightning illuminating the black sky, and she saw Derby's face. She grinned, and started skipping home, jumping in every puddle she could.

Derby woke up the next morning, eyes heavy, but his heart light. He blinked, as a knock resounded around the room.

"Time to wake up," Bif said through the door.

"I'm up," he called.

He could hear Bif's heavy foot prints walk down the hall, and he threw the covers off, changing into his regular Aquaberry outfit, smoothed his hair, and put on the cologne Rachel loved, but made Pinky gag.

He stepped out, and Gord skipped by him.

"Why are you so happy?" Derby asked, an eye brow raised.

Gord beamed at him, turning around, "Rachel agreed to go clothes shopping with me later! I get to buy her a whole new wardrobe!"

Derby rolled his eyes, walking down the stairs as Tad walked up them, muttering math equations to himself.

"When did you learn math?" Derby asked, turning slightly to look at Tad.

Tad shrugged, "Rachel helped me study."

"Have you seen Bif?"

"After he woke you up, he said something about going to go find Rachel and asking her some questions about boxing moves."

Derby nodded, and continued down the steps, hearing Pinky's high voice ordering his men around.

"Ah! Derby! Just who I wanted to see. What is this I hear about Rachel coming over last night?"

Derby stared up at his betrothed, her cold eyes staring back at him, unlike Rachel's warm ones. She looked the same as ever, same short boy cut hairstyle, same clothes, same personality, but something seemed different about her. Derby searched hard, trying to see if she added a color, and added highlights, but he couldn't find anything.

"Derby?" Pinky asked loudly, "You okay?"

Her voice was loud, and he started thinking about Rachel's warm voice. He grinned, and Pinky gave him an odd look.

"So are we still on for Saturday night?" she asked him.

He shook his head, "Bif has a boxing match, and I have to go cheer him on."

Pinky sighed in an annoyed voice, "Fine. But, we will go on a date soon."

"Don't worry, we will," Derby grabbed her hand, and kissed it, and Pinky couldn't help but giggle.

"Okay, Derby, I'll see you later."

He nodded, and she skipped out the door. Derby bit his lip, hearing the door bang open, and a voice announcing, "I'm here!"

Derby couldn't help but laugh, as Rachel dramatized her entrance.

"And how is your morning?" she asked him, flinging her bag by the wall.

"Pretty good."

Derby stared at her, noticing how she glanced around the room, before focusing on him, or how her hair swung gently on behind her, or how when she got irritated with him she started tapping her foot.

"DERBY!" she pushed him lightly, trying to get his attention.

"What?" he asked.

"I asked you a question."

"Could you repeat it?"

"Are you okay?"

His eyebrows knitted together, "Yeah. Why?"

"You seem..." she searched for the word, staring behind him, "distracted."

"I'm fine."

She smiled at him, before intertwining their arms, "So! Wanna go to class?"

He sighed, "Fine. I guess."

She laughed, pulling him along, and grabbing her book bag at the same time.

They stepped outside the House, the preps instantly greeting them.

"Rachel!" Gord waved at her.

She waved back, Derby giving him a nod. He nodded back at him, as Bif approached them.

"How are you doing Derby?" Bif asked him.

Derby looked up slightly, annoyed that Bif was taller, then said, "I'm fine. Thanks for asking."

Bif nodded curtly at him, positioning himself at Derby's other side. It was strange, seeing Rachel on Derby's arm, instead of Pinky. Angie saw, and started whispering to Christy, who's eyes widened and ran off. Rachel bit her lip, thinking about going after her, but Derby tugged her arm.

"What was that for?" she asked him.

He smirked down at her, "Did you want me to let you fall into the fountain?"

She blushed, before looking down. He smiled down at her.

"Crap, I've got to go to auto shop," Bif said, turning to head the opposite way.

"Bye Bif!" Rachel smiled and waved after him.

"Bye," he smiled back at her, before jogging the way they came.

Derby nodded at him, before he and Rachel headed towards the front door. The door opened dramatically, and the heads in the hall turned to look at them. Rachel and Derby stopped at the staircase.

"So we're going into town for lunch, correct?" Derby asked her.

Rachel nodded, tucking some hair behind her ear, "I'll see you at lunch."

"See you at lunch."

Rachel's face flushed. Derby bent down, giving her a small, light kiss on the cheek, but enough for her to feel a static shock sent to her heart and feel as if a rabbit was in her chest, and gave her a small wink, before heading towards chemistry. Rachel smiled lightheaded, and gripped the staircase rail, staring at the floor. Her face started cooling down, and she couldn't help but do the school girl thing: she giggled and had a mini freak out. Clasping her hands together, she floated up the stairs, and into her art class, her hand sketching lightly as she thought of Derby.

In the end, she had a picture of Derby. In his house. Looking like he ruled the world. The light shone through the window and over the picture, a light shadow casting over the scene. She smiled and giggled, as she added the finishing touch. Rachel on his side, making the picture complete.

_AN: Please review. And, as you know, this is for you, iEmbarrassDerbyHarrington. I hoped you like it._


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